Bugged
by dw77
Summary: Following the kiss at the UFN negotiations a bug left on Lelouch's person gives rise to revelations that rock the Black Knights. but will it be enough to change history? AU. meant to be a tear jerker. Chapter 8: "The Battle of Mount Fuji Part 3" is up only 1 more chapter.
1. The Bug

Bugged:

Synopsis When Kallen Kisses Lelouch she leaves him bugged and the black knight overhear a sorrowful and bitter rant;

AU

Kozuki Kallen and the other Members of the Black Knight elites Gather around the Transceiver tuned to the bug Kallen planted on Lelouch. 'Why does this feel like I am betraying Lelouch…' Kallen thinks 'No he betrayed us, he used us as disposable pawns… but why did he tell me to "live on"? Why?'

Suddenly Lelouch's voice emanates from the speaker filled with sorrow and pain. "Lelouch's Audio Diary entry 17 to be archived in the restricted section of the imperial library… Damn it Kallen. Why did you have to kiss me? Why? I didn't need to be reminded about having to throw away my last shot at happiness thanks to those short sighted idiots, and that silver-tongued bastard Schniezel."

Kallen and the others stare at the transceiver stunned and Kallen thinks 'Wait… What?! His last shot at Happiness?...'

Lelouch continued bitterly "And for what? For What? The irrational suspicion that I had geassed them and the 'return' of Japan?" Then Lelouch's voice became even more bitter. "I wonder if they even understand the full price that they would have paid for Japan… those bastards betrayed not just me but the entire UFN in their greed… those fools just don't understand the worth of a great strategist. Yes they would have gotten Japan in exchange for my life… but for how long?... Hah… At best until Xingke dies… how long would that be? Two years? Three? In reality they sold both me and the world to Schniezel… Heh… Wonder if that has crossed any of their minds yet… Is three years of freedom for Japan worth the freedom of the entire world?" At this all of the listening members of the black knights pale not only did they sell their honor but also the world. "The really sad thing is if I fail to stop the Damocles soon Schniezel will rule the world in less than a week." This caused several members of the black knights to feel ill including Kallen.

"I could have been happy with you Kallen… but no those idiots took the word of their enemy at face value unquestioning… those idiots would even have taken your life to 'free you'… I just wish I had been able to argue with them without getting you killed too… but… no sense in both of us dying… they would have just thought I was manipulating them and fired… many of this world's sorrows seem to come from my family… all of mine arise from them too…" at this point Lelouch started sobbing. "Well… if everything… goes to plan… the royal family… will… go extinct… with my… death in… a couple months…" Following this anguished sobs emanated from the speakers.

"Oh god… Le… Lelouch…" Kallen said as tears ran down her face before adding to the puddle on the ground as she realized that the man she loved really is worthy of that love; and actually loved her back; but the joy of that revelation was first tempered by the obvious pain said man was in and then completely eliminated by the revelation that he was apparently suicidal… the rest of the Black Knights stood still completely shocked by what they heard.

After a few minutes of broken sobbing Lelouch pulled himself together enough to continue his entry. "Kallen… Oh Kallen… I wish you and I could have been able to be together… you could have been my queen; my empress… not my enemy… never my enemy… but though we can't be happy doesn't mean you can't be Kallen… my love… I swear I'll do everything in my power to create a world where you can find happiness even if those traitorous dogs don't deserve that world… even if the price includes you hating me for all eternity it'll be worth it if you can be happy my love… I just hope that one day you can forgive me for what I must do…" after a period of silence Lelouch said as calmly as possible "End of Entry" after a further period of incoherent sobbing Lelouch commented "God I can't rally my troops against Schniezel like this."

He changed out of his clothes and deposited them to get washed where the dampness shorted out the bug with a bit of loud static leaving the gathered Black Knights stunned into silence as Kallen wept on the ground the full realization of how much Lelouch actually loves her and just how badly she has betrayed that love hitting her full force.

Oghi spoke up "We can't trust this he obviously knew abou-" getting cut off by a flying uppercut from an enraged Kallen

"Get off your high horse Oghi… there was no way he could have known about that bug… NONE! Stop trying to rationalize the biggest mistake we have ever made. That rash decision not only turned our LEADER into an enemy; but forced the man I love who I just found out loves me back to push me away to save me from you, whereas Viletta, who claims to love you, SHOT YOU."

"LEAVE HER OUT OF THIS! SHE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT!"

"SHE HAS **EVERYTHING** TO DO WITH IT! On her word you believed two **Britannian Royals** who had every reason to want **ZERO** **DEAD**... **YOU** would have **SHOT ME** the **YOUNGER SISTER** who you **PROMISED** your **BEST FRIEND NAOTO** you would **PROTECT**. And the rest of you… you weren't going to give him a chance to explain things at all and he could see that… Todoh you easily bought into the line that Lelouch blew General Katase up destroying the JLF… think about it for a second wouldn't a line like that be the perfect thing to turn you and the swords against Lelouch? And even if it is true? SO WHAT! You wouldn't have been able to do anywhere near as much as you did under Lelouch's leadership. We are all guilty of treason not just against Lelouch; but against the world and I refuse to allow Schniezel his way. We are all fools for believing our worst enemy on such weak evidence and none of **YOU** allowed him the chance to defend himself. At least I tried before he **SAVED ME** from all of **YOU**!" Kallen screamed at them before rushing off to the Guren with Ohgi yelling "STOP HER!"

A/N: Anywho I felt like trying my hand at creating something that is in part a tear jerker and I got this Idea from a fanfic by "Zeionia aka Disturbed" the title of said fic is **Speak**; I am not one to write much romance stuff but this was the best angle I could figure out for a tear jerker two torn hearts one which thought it had found refuge from the pain in hatred and the other cut adrift from all emotional support having lost everything and still trying to do right by his love.

Anyway Please review; please tell me how well I communicate the emotion in the piece.


	2. Nunnally's Memories

A/N Lelouch has no idea Nunnally is alive right now because Schniezel has yet to deliver his ultimatum; Lelouch's conclusion from the previous chapter is based off of the information he was able to find on the Damocles.

Chapter Two: Nunnally's Memories

Having learned of the Black Knights plan to place a bug on Lelouch, at the UFN meeting; Cornelia and Schniezel tuned into one of the several bugs left aboard the Ikaruga by Deithard. Schniezel had decided to keep Nunnally away to avoid anything that could shake her resolve to remove Lelouch from the throne. He thanked his luck that he had decided to keep Nunnally away knowing that hearing what they had just heard could turn her against him. However a rather large surprise awaited him in the form of Cornelia's shaken resolve...

"Oh God… Schniezel are we really doing the right thing here?" she said with doubt lacing her voice.

"What could you possibly mean sister?" Schneizel responded

"What is it that Lelouch has gone through these past eight years… he's supposedly the most powerful man in the world… but he seems to be without any real hope… he's even suicidal now… are we doing the right thing by turning Nunnally against him…" the doubt growing even more evident in her tone.

"My my Cornelia are we starting to feel bad for the murderer of Euphie and Clovis?"

"No **Brother**; Lelouch still needs to pay for his crimes." Cornelia said before stalking off.

'Looks like I'll need to make a minor change in my plans' Schniezel noted as Cornelia passed through the door.

* * *

Cornelia decided to ask go get Nunnally for the next part of the plan but the nagging doubt stayed in the back of her mind 'What did Lelouch really go through what turned him into Zero?' She resolved to ask Nunnally a few questions about the war and their years as commoners…

She stopped in front of the door to the gardens where Nunnally was and composed herself before passing through the threshold and announcing her presence. "Nunnally I'm here were going to offer our ultimatum to Lelouch now; but while we head there I want to ask you about who Lelouch was before he killed Clovis… what did you go through?"

"Sister it saddens me to remember it but back then I… I…" Nunnally said as her eyes started glistening.

"Nunnally you don't need to…" Cornelia started before Nunnally interrupted.

"NO Sister I need to say this… After all I'm the one who failed him…" she started as tears rolled down her cheeks. "I thought of Big Brother as my Angel… but he was a wounded angel…"

"What do you mean Nunnally?" Cornelia asked

"When Mother died and we were sent to Japan something inside Lelouch… broke… he changed… he became so sad and… so lonely… his entire purpose in life became protecting me..." Nunnally informed her sister. "he sacrificed his childhood for me… so I could have a normal childhood… he took care of me to the best of his ability… he filled the roles of a mother and a father as well as his own of elder sibling… he took care of my needs and was so diligent that he ignored his own need to heal… I wanted to find a way to help him heal but I never could… so I promised myself that I would keep my Big Brother my Wounded Angel from falling… until he could find someone who could heal him…"

Hearing this Cornelia had to hold back tears herself. 'Oh no… Lelouch you… you carried that with you… so that's why… we… no I failed you… it all traces back to Marianne's death… I failed to protect her and Nunnally… so you took it on yourself damning the consequences it had on you…'

After a short pause Nunnally continued. "Back at Ashford academy just as I was starting to despair that anyone could come along and help Lelouch recover from the pain and loneliness that he had… this girl who was always out sick came back… he acted a bit more normally around her he would even tease her sometimes…" Nunnally smiled sadly at this. "When she was around he seemed a little bit less lonely… and a little happier… She gave me hope for Lelouch…"

"Who was she… who was this girl?" Cornelia asked fearing that she knew the answer.

"I knew her as the meek and sickly Stadtfeld heiress… It wasn't until later that I found out that she was the ace of the black knights… Her name is" at this Cornelia tensed "Kallen Kozuki."

Upon hearing this Cornelia's blood ran cold… the very woman that Lelouch had confessed to loving… the woman who he had thrown aside his own life to save from their own comrades… this woman according to Nunnally was also the only person who according to Nunnally was able to heal Lelouch's wounded heart… suddenly she was no longer as eager to have Nunnally tell Lelouch that she opposed him…

"Nunnally are you sure you want to tell Lelouch that you are his enemy now?" though Cornelia already knew the answer.

"Yes Sister; Big Brother needs to know he has gone too far; and I need to be one of the ones who to stop him… I failed him… I can't let him fall any further…" Nunnally cried tears flooding down her face "to let him continue would be to fail him even worse."

"What do you mean Nunnally?" Cornelia asked after a moment where the weight of the harm to Lelouch her family had caused.

"Sister... Cornelia if he stays on this path… he'll be remembered and hated forever… if I can save him from this by making the Damocles and FLEIJA the target of the world's hate… I'll do anything… it's the least I can do to repay all the kindness, love and care he gave me… I will stop the world from hating him forever." Nunnally said with finality.

Cornelia felt oddly proud of Nunnally but she still felt ill at the prospect. "You would take this path even if it means Lelouch will die Nunnally? Are you sure?"

"Yes Sister… Big Brother has sinned too much…" Nunnally said sadly before slowly regaining her compsure.

Noticing this Cornelia decided that they needed to take a little detour telling Nunnally in a poor attempt at humor "Lets change you out of those clothes I can't let Lelouch see I made you cry." This comment earned a bitter laugh from Nunnally and a sad smile. As they went to obtain a change of clothing.

* * *

A/N well that's chapter 2…

Again please review and I am looking forward to knowing how effective the scenes are…

Anyway I know that the black knight will divide into three camps"

The Black Guard spear-headed by Kallen; those who have decided to throw their support behind Lelouch the smallest of the three groups; so far the only members I have nailed down are Kallen and Tamaki. Bit of trivia Oghi's group will refer to the Black Guard as the Blaggards.

Oghi's group; which picks up the name the White Guard in response to the Black Guard due to their close allegiance to Schniezel the 'White Prince' for "saving" them from Lelouch. This is the second largest group. The Black Guard refers to them as the traitors.

Finally the Black Knights proper who are still in service to the UFN while they stand against Lelouch it is because he holds the UFN members hostage they are willing to negotiate with Lelouch unlike the white guard. They do not stand with Schniezel.

Quick question I will not have Todoh and Chiba be in the same faction of the Black knights so who should go where? I really want to tackle how Chiba would react to going against Todoh in battle with her whole unspoken crush on Todoh… just where to put the two of them I also plan to have Oghi feeling guilty about fighting Kallen; and Kallen feeling bad about having turned against Lelouch.

Anyway Please review tell me how you liked it and suggestions would be appreciated…


	3. Confrontation and Ultimatum

Disclaimer DW77 does not own Code Geass or the Doctor Who quote at the end of the chapter

I am trying a different writing style that has more of an emphasis on exposition depending on how this goes off I may revert to the old style.

This chapter is not meant to be as emotionally jarring as the last two though (I have found that in general it is a bad idea to have the emotional stuff firing on all cylinders every chapter.)

Chapter 3: Confrontation and Ultimatum

Jeremiah Gottwald was patrolling the perimeter of Ashford Academy inspecting the troop and had just recently reached the main gates of the establishment when he noticed a fast moving object in the sky headed for the Academy. Taking immediate note of it he quickly realized that what he sees is the Gurren!

"Sir Kururugi! It's the Guren it's heading right here!" Orange yelled over the comlink. This alert caused Suzaku to rocket into the sky ready to intercept Kallen. Orange proceeded to scramble the troops for an incoming assault.

"KALLEN! Are you here to rescue the UFN representatives? Or is it to kill Lelouch? If so I stand in your way!" Suzaku demanded while drawing his MVS blades in preparation to duel with Kallen.

"No Suzaku; I Kozuki Kallen hereby return to the service of Lelouch Vi Britannia; I wish return to the service of Zero."

"Wait… WHAT?" Suzaku cried momentarily knocked off guard by Kallen's statement before hastily putting it back up.

After a couple seconds Suzaku realized that Kallen hadn't taken advantage of that momentary lapse and had even landed and deactivated the Guren. "You're… you're serious aren't you… Why Kallen? Why do you wish to serve Lelouch?"

Kallen proceeded to climb out of her Kinghtmare before answering. "Because I finally know what Lelouch thinks of me" Kallen said calmly and cryptically with a slight smile. "Now could you get me an audience with 'His Majesty'?"

"Not before you explain yourself a bit better!" Suzaku said relaxing some before landing.

"It took me a while to understand why he called the Black Knights his Pawns and then told me to 'Live on'" Kallen replied while descending from the Guren. "Now when are you going to arrange that audience?"

* * *

After Lelouch had agreed to an audience with Kallen; Jeremiah had insisted on escorting Kallen to Lelouch and on standing guard over the proceedings.

"My Lord I present Lady Kal…" Orange trailed off for a second as he received a sharp glare from the Red Lotus. "Kozuki Kallen!"

"So Kallen why is it that you, ace of the Black Knights and soldier of the UFN, comes before me seeking an audience?" Lelouch asked coolly though underneath it all he was worried that she had seen past his bluff aboard the Ikaruga somehow.

"Lelouch I finally found my answer to what you think of me… I'm important to you aren't I?" Kallen said; smirking at seeing Lelouch's eyes widen momentarily before he quickly hid his reaction with a chuckle hoping he could throw her off the scent.

"What led you to that conclusion Kallen?" he asked. Kallen decided to hide the fact of her source being the bug she planted on Lelouch when she kissed him earlier deciding it would only

"Two words Lelouch; Two words lead me to this conclusion: 'Live On'; you said that after calling us all pawns to push me away didn't you? You called the Black Knights pawns to save me; then you told me to 'Live On' because you want me to live a happy life isn't that right Lelouch?" at this Lelouch couldn't hide his amazement any longer.

"How Kallen? How could you read me so early?" He asked before shaking his head and regaining control of himself. "It doesn't matter… Yes Kallen, I don't know how you figured it out but I do care for you… But we can never be… I was once told that if someone is important to you the best way to protect it is to push it awa…"

"YOU IDIOT!" Kallen screamed at Lelouch as her fist connected with the side of his face while Jeremiah looked on with a slightly bemused smile.

"Jeremiah I thought you came along to protect me!" Lelouch cried when he saw that Orange hadn't budged.

"My lord my responsibility is to protect you from your enemies; not to defend you from a woman in love." Jeremiah replied with a growing smirk as Kallen's face did a passable imitation of her hair.

"No! It… It's not like…" Kallen stuttered before turning her wrath back at Lelouch "Damn it Lelouch you almost made me suffer the greatest shame of a bodyguard; Having their ward sacrifice their life to save the guard! It's my job to protect you not the other way around get that through your thic…" Kallen Screamed at him before he interrupted her rant with "What is It?". A chill of fear climbed her spine as she saw Lelouch's enraged and sorrowful face as he paid attention to the com-link and got up to walk off.

"Damn he made his move…" Lelouch muttered as he rushed past Kallen heading for the shuttle.

"What happened Lelouch? What was that?" Kallen asked wondering what it was that had distracted Lelouch.

"Pendragon has been destroyed." He said as he went back to nursing the side of his face. Kallen rushed to the Guren to head off with Lelouch.

* * *

Cornelia escorted Nunnally back to the gardens after getting her changed out of her tear stained gown and into another one. As she walked she pondered Nunnally's words and found herself becoming wistful. Thoughts of that which might have been that which could have been prevented had she and the other members of the royal family had acted more like a family than like strangers when the Vi Britannia's were exiled. Or if she and the others had put more effort into finding them alive or dead; could they have been found alive and the whole disaster averted? Everything she thought of was an example of where she had utterly failed her little brother. While she had no mercy for the current Lelouch she wished that there were something that she could have done to save Lelouch before the little boy she had known and loved had been crushed completely by the darkness that had spawned Zero… as she and Nunnally finally reached the gardens; Cornelia paused for a second and wiped away a single tear that had managed to escape and she took a moment to pray that she could still make things right by that little boy she had loved so dearly; even if the same couldn't be done for the present Lelouch.

* * *

As they took off Suzaku got Kallen in on the conversation with Lelouch and C.C. feeling that it would be best to not leave her out of the loop. Kallen was relieved that Lelouch didn't seem to mind.

"Yes I have no doubt that all the FLEIJA warheads are there. The sky-fortress Damocles was developed by the Toromo Agency in Cambodia; it is a perfect base for the FLEIJAs" Lelouch commented over the channel. Suddenly a new request to join the channel appeared.

"The only other person who knows this channel is…" C.C. commented before Lelouch grunted and accepted the request.

Schneizel appeared on the Screens "Do you enjoy forcing others to be subservient to your will Lelouch?"

"What do you want Schneizel?" Lelouch Queried in disdain.

"I have gathered all the FLEIJA Warheads they're deployed aboard the Damocles"

"You are prepared to attack the Britannian Emperor?"

"I'm afraid that is a moot point; I do not recognize you as the Emperor." Schneizel replied

"I see I suppose that you think that the one who is best suited to rule is you?" Lelouch said bemusedly

"No the one best suited to rule is her" Schniezel gestured as the camera panned down and to the left to reveal someone Lelouch had thought dead. The camera continued to pan out until Cornelia, Schneizel, Deithard, and Kannon were all revealed alongside Nunnally. Suzaku and Kallen both gasped "Nunnally"

Nunnally Spoke: "Listen carefully Lelouch; Suzaku. I declare. You're my enemies from this point on"

"Nunnally… it's you you're alive…" Lelouch said with a mixture of happiness at her survival and devastation at her statement.

"Yes; thanks to our brother Schneizel" she affirmed

Suzaku asked "Nunnally do you understand what Schneizel has done?"

"Yes he attacked the Capitol with a FLEIJA warhead." She responded calmly

"if you know about that then wh…"

"Is Using Geass on people better?" Nunnaly interjected "Both you and Lelouch have been lying to me from the start haven't you? But now I know everything. You were Zero from the beginning… weren't you? Why? Tell me. If this was all because of me; I…"

"Hahahahaha. My little sister presumptuous as ever; do you really think that that people will help you all the time out of the goodness of their own hearts? It's so easy to criticize others while you keep your hands clean; you have become the quintessence of the privileged aristocrat that I have worked so hard to destroy." Lelouch's laugh and speech finally pushed Kallen to the point of explosion.

"GOD Damn You ALL!" Kallen screamed at the screen startling not just Lelouch and Suzaku but also all those in the gardens on the Damocles. "You would wipe an entire city full of people off the map because you disagree with Lelouch? You didn't even try to talk first do the lives of the commoners really mean so little to you? You are no better than the old emperor sitting on your thrones on high considering everyone else to be nothing but ants if they stand in your way. Your attitude sickens me; you believe yourselves to be right yet; you don't understand anything!"

Nunnally was even further startled by the familiar voice "Is that you Kallen? Why are you with Lelouch? Didn't he betray the Black Knights and the UFN? Why do you support him? Did he use his Geass on you too?"

In response to this Kallen laughed bitterly. "My heart is my own Nunnally; The real question is why… Why. Don't. Any. Of. YOU? You're his family! It's supposed to be your job to love and care for him!"

Cornelia snapped indignantly at this "Why Should we? He killed Euphie! And Clovis!"

Nunnally nearly wept but refrained from doing so "He… Brother has fallen to far…"

Schneizel calmly stated: "Lelouch Has committed far too many crimes to ever be forgiven or ever earn redemption. A world lead by him will never be peaceful; and isn't peace what this everyone in this world strives for?"

Suzaku broke in "Cornelia don't even start compared to your hands; Lelouch's are clean of royal blood."

"None of you get it do you?"Kallen asked sardonically with a look of disgust on her face.

"Kallen No..." Lelouch Started moving to disconnect her from the conversation.

"Enough Lelouch; they need to hear this they need to understand the depths of their own sins."

"For the longest time I looked down on my Mother because I thought she was a hopeless romantic; that she had wasted her life chasing after a man who would never take notice of her again… once I came to that conclusion I refused to look any further being totally disgusted by what I saw…" Kallen said sadly remembering how poorly she treated her mother. "However thanks to Lelouch; I was able to learn that she wasn't there for my father she wanted to be near me!"

"What does any of that have to do with our misunderstanding of Lelouch?" Schneizel inquired calmly.

"All of you have fallen into a similar trap; you are unable to look past all of his masks. Under the masks of Emperor; Revolutionary and Student; beyond those and many more lies your lost little ten year old brother. A hurt, lonely, and terrified little boy…" Kallen started

"Kallen… please don't…" Lelouch tried again but was quickly shushed by Kallen while Cornelia thought 'Wait is she saying that underneath it all my little brother still exists?' and C.C. looked on with a look of approval.

"A little boy who simply wanted to find out why his mother had to die and his sister was crippled. A little boy who was rendered powerless and rejected because he dared to ask why his mother was Killed. Since his Mother was assassinated Lelouch has hurt and he has feared not just Loss but also Rejection… as such he hasn't allowed anyone to get close to him… he hasn't let anyone have the chance to heal his pain… and so his wound festered and he slowly dug his own personal hell… you all think of him as a heartless monster? You want to see a monster? Look in the mirror. For eight long years your brother has been in the agony of both his own misery and that of others. Do you think he doesn't understand the misery his actions have brought to others? Trust me he feels the full weight of each and every single one of those deaths; he's seen how it can hurt families how what he has done has hurt those left behind. Yet here you are the last living members of his family, now that you have destroyed Pendragon, declaring yourselves his enemies? You are not worthy of being called his family; if this is how you treat a sibling in pain you are nothing more than a RABID PACK OF WOLVES! I once told him I would follow him to hell… I'm here to do the one thing that you all failed to do so long ago! I'm here to save him!"

Schneizel Cut the connection fearing that any further and he wouldn't be able to keep Nunnally's resolve Intact. The last sight that Kallen, Lelouch, Suzaku, and C.C. took note of was the look of shame on Cornelia's face. He quickly proceeded to reassure Nunnally that the casualties at Pendragon were minimal and hand the firing key over before Cornelia spoke up "We need to talk Schneizel" taking note of Cornelia's state which betrayed only the slightest portion of the maelstrom raging inside Schneizel thought 'Impressive Lelouch that was supposed to break you but you had a card up your sleeve that caused it to backfire on me. Bravo little brother.'

* * *

Kallen was about to board the Avalon after the shuttle when C.C. contacted her on a private channel.

"You're an interesting one you know that? It was very entertaining watching you rip the Royal family several new ones." C.C.'s smirk the only thing attesting to the truth of her words. "I just wish I had gotten a shot of Cornelia's face."

At this Kallen felt a great sense of accomplishment; she; Kozuki Kallen had actually shaken the infamously stiff lipped 'Witch of Britannia'.

"But one of the things you said, about Lelouch still being a lonely sad 10 year old boy deep down was it? It reminded me of a prophecy I heard long ago…" C.C. continued

At this Kallen immediately became suspicious after all; while she didn't know a lot about Geass she figured that Lelouch's power couldn't be the only supernatural thing in this world… so why not actual prophecies? "TELL ME" Kallen demanded quickly.

Not showing any signs of being startled C.C. looked straight at the screen "Give me a second to recall it… Alright…"

"Demons run when a good man goes to war. Night will fall and drown the Sun. When a good man goes to war. Friendship dies and true love lies. Night will fall and the Dark will rise. When a good man goes to war. Demons run but count the cost. The battle's won but the child is lost." After this C.C. cut the connection 'I wonder Kallen; are you strong enough to overcome fate?'

* * *

Authors notes: anyway... I'd like to hear how you guys think the demons run poem applies to the Code Geass universe... this chapter is primarily build up for chapters four and five and it contains a nice bit of foreshadowing too (in my opinion anyway...)

so a few questions for you guys to think about:

Who are the Demons that run?

What is are the Night, the Sun and the Dark?

what is the battle? What is the prize fought for?

Who are the 'good man' and the 'child'?

but despite all of that being deliberately left somewhat ambiguous. I think that at least 'Friendship dies and true love lies' should be a bit clearer

And no I am not just pulling this out of mid air I do have a general outline for the story.


	4. What the Light can do

Chapter 4: What the Light can do.

Schneizel and Cornelia walked into the throne room in silence Schneizel merely awaiting the question and Cornelia mustering the courage to ask it. during the walk she started a small recorder on her belt.

"Schneizel you lied to Nunnally about the evacuation didn't you?" Cornelia paused and asked whilst praying she was wrong.

"Yes. What about it?" Schniezel responded turning around to face his half-sister

"You mean the people of Pendragon were…" Cornelia started to ask whilst fighting the tears at the loss of not just innocent lives but the lives of the rest of her family; she was sickened by the amount of innocent blood on her hands. She was guilty of more loss of blood in her own family than Lelouch because of her support of Schneizel.

"I had them 'vanish'; it was better for them than a life of loyalty to Lelouch; wouldn't you say?" Schniezel said

"They're our own people; our own family! and you told Nunnally!" Cornelia retorted astonished at the Nonchalant attitude that her brother had taken toward the loss of life.

"Lies are expedient Cornelia… there's no need to tell Nunnally things that would only get in the way of her opposition to Lelouch. She will never know the difference."

"You would use everyone? Even your own sister?" Cornelia stated with a scowl and burgeoning anger.

"Cornelia; what is it that people truly want? Starvation? Discrimination and corruption? War and Terrorism? What they want sister are the problems of the world to go away forever. People can't understand each other in these situations at all."

"Your theories don't justify the slaughter of civilians or mass Fratricide. Yes there is suffering in the world but there are also goals to strive for! Without those goals life is meaningless!" Cornelia retorted starting to fear Schneizel as a great hatred began to grow within her.

"Even those who reject war rely on the police; People are drive by their own desires; the ambition within the soul of man cannot be denied. So why win hearts and minds? Why not bring peace with a system and power? After all threats, promises, and good intentions are worth naught next to action." Schneizel said. "In ten days the Damocles will enter the airspace of the United States of China where the Damocles will enter a secondary stage of acceleration until we reach 300 kilometers from there we will be able to hit every enemy nation with FLEIJAs." At this Cornelia's mind raced Schneizel doesn't even see that what he is doing is orders of magnitude worse; his plan for the Damocles is terrorism perfected. Does he really believe that he is by definition right if Lelouch is wrong? Does Schneizel really believe himself to be above all others?'

"Are you Mad? I only agreed to use them against Lelouch! This would destroy the world! Would you really subjugate the world to create your Utopia? As the price of peace you would exchange life for mere existence and fear?" Cornelia started to panic seeing the true depth of Schneizel's madness. The absolute disregard for human life was terrifying.

"To put it quite simply; Yes; Cornelia, Peace is an illusion to turn an illusion into reality requires Discipline." Schneizel responded.

"You plan to discipline the entire world? That is the province of a god! You have no right!" Cornelia exasperatedly exclaimed.

"Then I shall become a god; if that is what it takes to bring peace to the world I will become Helios." Schneizel said estimating that he had just about drawn Cornelia to take the bait. 'Scheizel's statement proves that he does indeed find himself worth infinitely than the common man.' Cornelia thought 'How could I have been so blind? If Nunnally is right and Lelouch is akin to a Fallen Angel then Schneizel is an outright Demon.'

Suddenly Deithard appeared "I knew I was right in siding with you; your plans surpass Zero's chaos; an absolute state of nothingness and a cataclysmic transformation!"

Kannon interjected "Prince Schneizel A faction of the Black Knights lead by Kaname Oghi; has contacted us and said that if we wish to kill Lelouch; they are willing to join you immediately; furthermore the main body of the Black Knights lead by Commander Xingke has also contacted us saying that if you assist them in the recovery of the UFN hostages and in stopping Lelouch they will join you as well."

"I accept; those who have experienced Lelouch's tyranny first hand will have no recourse but to choose the lesser of two evils." Schneizel said

"Is that why you have let him get away with this for so long?" Cornelia asked aghast

"It was a way to minimize casualties; but in the end if I must sacrifice one or two bill…" Schniezel said before being interrupted by Cornelia.

"Do you really think that people will want to live in this Ideal world of yours Schneizel? Need I remind you that the Damocles himself wanted out of paradise when the threat of death was constantly hanging over his head; your solution would condemn every man, woman and child to hell! Peace obtained by force Is not Peace!" Cornelia then charged Schneizel with her sword drawn and was gunned down. Ash she fell She finally realized what it is that Lelouch has been fighting against all this time… before she lost consciousness she determined that she would get the recording off to the Black Knights as soon as possible if what Schneizel said was true and they were siding with what they thought was the lesser evil then they would surely side with Lelouch in fighting Schneizel. She just prayed that she would survive. She may not ever be able to forgive Lelouch for Euphie but she had done far worse next to Schneizel.

'Those who fear the darkness have never seen what the Light can do.' She thought back to something Lady Marianne once told her as she lost consciousness.

"This is so sad Cornelia…" Schneizel said before ordering her to be dropped off at the nearest medical facilities off of the Damocles.

* * *

When Cornelia lost consciousness she didn't slip off into blissful nothingness… she slipped into a dream world… she immediately heard the soft sobbing of a young boy; she looked through the misty darkness towards the sound; but failed to see anything other than a distant spot of light. Not knowing what else to do she made her way towards the sound. The young boy's sobbing seeming ever more pained as she drew nearer to the source; just as she could start making out a small gazebo, identical to the one in the gardens at the Aries Imperial Villa where she, Euphie, and the Vi Britannias used to spend so much time. Inside the gazebo was a small lamp illuminating the form of a sobbing boy in silhouette; she started to be able to make out some of what the boy was saying while he sobbed.

"I'm… Sorr.. I… ailed… ou… be…se… me… ou… all… suff…ed…It's all… my fault…" it occurred to her just how lonely this lost little boy sounded. And then it clicked…

"No… It can't be… Le… Lelouch…" she said shakily "is… is it really you Lelouch?..." then she steadied herself "Is that you Little Brother?"

"Cornelia?" he muttered for a second before abject terror washed through his voice. "NO! NO! STAY AWAY! Please STAY AWAY!" the young Lelouch screamed. Suddenly Cornelia Heard a burst of automatic gunfire and dove for nonexistent cover;

Rather than be riddled with bullets she heard a mass hit the ground not all too far away from her between her and the light where her little brother was sobbing in pain, terror and loneliness; her little brother that she failed to help, to protect, all those years ago; even if this wasn't real she would be there for Lelouch now she would help her brother. As she got up so did the apparition that stood in between her and her kid brother.

"I will not let you get any closer to him Cornelia." The ominous voice of Zero carried over to her but when she drew closer however she saw that this was not the Zero that everyone recognized; the being before her wore not a black and purple helmet but a white masquerade mask revealing his purple eyes behind him were a pair of wings covered in feathers that matched his jet black hair. Barely visible behind the white mask were a pair of purple eyes. Otherwise the being appeared to be the splitting image of a Rounds. "I exist to protect that which he considers important. So I shall let you no closer to him." The figure said.

"Who or what are you? And why does he fear me so much? Is it because I've been trying to kill him since he killed Euphie?" Cornelia asked finally registering the absolute terror in the voice of her younger brother and how it caused her so much pain to hear as she started to tear up. "Why is Lelouch so terrified of me!?"

"You've got it wrong Cornelia; he isn't afraid of you, even for wanting to kill him; he is afraid for you and for himself. He has hurt or failed everyone he has ever gotten close to; everyone that has ever been important to him… he cannot stand to harm another person special to him or risk anyone getting close enough to be harmed" the specter said as Cornelia finally noticed the blood spreading on the uniform from the many wounds the being has suffered staining it black as some blood began to cover the white mask as well. "At this point he would welcome death with open arms just to stop the pain. As for my identity… I… am… Zero."

This revelation stunned Cornelia who then asked; "I recognize that gazebo… it's from the Aries Villa… but where's everything else? And how are you Zero? Why Can't I get any closer? he needs someone to comfort him!"

"You are eight years too late Cornelia; eight years ago you wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between here and the real Villa; this place Cornelia is a representation of his psyche… eight years ago the cataclysms hit and his world would never and could never be the same."

"Wait are you saying that Marianne's death and the exile caused all this?" Cornelia asked stunned that this kind of damage had been done back then…. 'Oh God… I should have tried to comfort Lelouch instead of drowning in my own grief…' she also noticed that the wounded angel's costume had finished transforming into Zero's uniform.

"No Cornelia; eight years of repeated loss and rejection, of feelings of guilt and loneliness, eight years of pain and suffering have done this; each time he has tried to rebuild; each time he has tried to let people get close he has suffered a great loss. With the Kururugi's he found some happiness and lost it in the war; at Ashford he found some happiness too but that was lost along with Euphie…" 'Zero' commented

"Wait! What happened with Euphie? Why did Lelouch use his Geass on her? Please tell me!" Cornelia begged she needed to know.

"Lelouch was trying to tell Euphie about geass in a roundabout way he was trying to warn her when he lost control and couldn't turn it off." Zero said. "Lelouch tried to protect her and instead had to kill her. Cornelia." At this Cornelia's heart stopped not entirely willing to believe this. 'If what he's saying is true… I've been trying to kill a man who tried and failed to protect Euphie… No that can't be… it's not possible… If he really cared… then…'

"Why? Why did he have to kill Euphie? Tell me that!" Cornelia screamed trying to reject the revelation.

"Because he couldn't bear to let her live like this." 'Zero' said as he gestured around him the pained sobs of little Lelouch echoing through the emptiness… "This isn't life; this is merely a painful existence, he couldn't do that to her, he has suffered eight years of his own private hell the pain slowly eating away at him, he has suffered and never been able to heal; but now because of Nunnally's proclamation even this gazebo has started to decay"

"Damn it…" Cornelia said her cold heart finally shattering under the weight of the suffering of the little brother who had once been so precious to her. She was his big sister damn it; she would damn the consequences for now. She had to do what she failed at so long ago; she would try to comfort him. As soon as her resolve was strong enough she yelled "GET OUT OF MY WAY ZERO!" and rushed past him knocking him out of the way as she sprinted for the gazebo. Zero shouted "No Don't!" but was too late Cornelia was inside the gazebo. When she got inside she finally saw what her little brother had been sobbing over. Four picture frames.

Her eyes crossed over her little brother looking just as he had eight years ago the day Empress Marianne had died. A devastated little boy; lonely, scared, and hurt. He looked at her in abject fear breaking her heart she could never hate this Lelouch. He visibly did his best to compose himself.

"Cornelia… Are you here for your… revenge?" the ten year old asked and gulped "If so I understand… A monster like me doesn't deserve to exist…" he stood tall eyes closed trembling slightly.

Cornelia stood stunned and glanced at the frames Lelouch had been sobbing over all of them had shattered glass and the photographs underneath the damaged glass were stained with tears… with Lelouch's tears… the pictures were of four different people; the nearest of them was one of Nunnally; next to that was one of that Kallen; the third was of Suzaku Kururugi; but it was the last one that broke her; she saw a flash of pink in the image and picked it up it was Euphemia her precious sister the reason that she had been trying to kill Lelouch… meanwhile the ten year old Lelouch stood wondering what was taking Cornelia so long to wrap her hands around his neck.

Cornelia continued to look at the tear stained photo of Euphie as she started to tear up. She then suddenly threw her arms around her little brother pulling him into a tight hug as she began sobbing softly… leaving him thoroughly confused "Why Sister? Why?" he asked.

"Lelouch I'm so sorry… I've been such a horrible big sister… I've failed you in every way possible… Just please give me another chance… I want to make things right… I… I… Forgive you Lelouch…" Cornelia said finally coming to the realization that this ten year old really is at the core of the man who had committed all those sins. "If I hadn't failed you all of this may never have happened…" she then held him out at arms-length and looked into his bewildered eyes. "Please forgive me Lelouch… Please…" the younger Lelouch started to reach out for a hug then a look of fear washed over him.

"Oh god… I can't let myself get close to you… you'll only get hurt!" little Lelouch screamed in panic before breaking away and fleeing into the shadows; leaving behind Cornelia sobbing in the light of the small lamp.

Zero entered the gazebo behind Cornelia and let her sob for a while before speaking up… "He forgave you a year ago Cornelia; that's why you are still alive now; otherwise you would have died during the black rebellion." Zero said "He is just afraid of letting anyone close anymore. What happens will be decided soon" as Zero started walking away Cornelia felt herself start to fall out of this world. The last thing she heard before she returned to blissful unawareness was Zero say "Night will fall; eh? I wonder…"

* * *

Aboard the Avalon Lelouch suddenly felt like he had been forgiven by someone; but couldn't figure out who had forgiven him. All he knew was that he didn't feel like he deserved it. before he could think about it further he was distracted by Kallen come up and say "Kozuki Kallen reporting for duty" before moving to stand next to him. He promptly forgot about the odd feeling of forgiveness.

* * *

Sitting next to his princess Gilbert G.P. Guilford was fiddling with the recorder that the doctors had found on his princess. When he realized that Cornelia was sobbing in her sleep he heard "Lelouch… Horrible… Failed… Forgive…" before her sobs wracked her even harder. Despite the odd tone she used he only hated Lelouch more because of it.

* * *

let's see how the information here changes any interpretations of "Demons Run"


	5. Enigma

Chapter 5: Enigma

As Kallen stood near Lelouch she let her mind wander; yet it kept returning to the prophecy that C.C. had told her. '_Demons run… but who are these demons? Are the demons Schneizel and his allies? The Good man is obviously Lelouch… so it has to be Schneizel and the others that fight against him… but they can't all be demons right?_' she kept focusing on that for a while before deciding to move on because she could get no further… '_What about "night will fall and drown the sun"? Is the prophecy foretelling the fall of the Black Knights? Drown the sun… what does that refer to? Unless the "Sun" is hope! But then does that mean that "night will fall" refers to the betrayal?' _It occurred to her that she had little information to work on just before she went to ask part of the next line flashed through her mind '_… And true love lies… Damn I have to find some way to make sure he tells the truth to me… but then why does he love me? I've betrayed him in horrible ways not once but twice… how can he love a traitor? Oh God… his love has stayed for me despite everything… I'm not sure I am worthy…' _Kallen thought as a sad and guilty expression clouded her face.

While this storm of emotions was raging inside Kallen; Lelouch was distracted with his own thoughts which had drifted towards Kallen since she showed up '_I did my best to push Kallen away; I've tried to protect her to the best of my ability… yet she came back to me… what does that mean?' _He thought when he noticed a single tear drop hit his hand causing him to look at Kallen's grief stricken face, he felt a pain blossom deep inside him viewing her expression. _'Is she regretting siding with me… I don't blame her; I'm the monster here…'_

Lelouch paused a moment before speaking to his ace; to the woman he loves "Kallen? What is it? Are you starting to regret…" she quickly cut him off.

"No Lelouch! Of course not! I know that you love me… I-I-I'm just not sure I am worthy of that love…" At this Lelouch was shocked '_She isn't sure if she is worthy?!' _he was left gaping as she continued "I've done nothing but betray you Lelouch! Three times Lelouch! Three times!" he took on a confused expression he could only think of two incidents that she could construe as her betraying him Kamine and during the betrayal when he pushed her away… she listed those herself as they also ran through his mind and he immediately focused all of his attention on her next words this third betrayal she spoke of; the one that had him so confused.

"But the one that hurts me the most was planting that bug on you when we kissed… I'm sorry Lelouch… I'm so sorry… I don't deserve your love… I don't deserve the love of the most caring man in the world…" Kallen said pushed to the emotional brink with her own self-loathing "I'm your guard; yet you were the one protecting me while I-I A-Abused you! I-I must have hurt you so badly! How? How can you love an unworthy traitor like me?" she said to the bewildered and slowly comprehending emperor beside her obviously torn and feeling not just torn but shredded.

Kallen started to collapse to her knees but Lelouch quickly caught her. He turned her tear streaked face to his as she tried to avert her gaze. What he did next surprised both of them; he caught her lips in a passionate kiss which left her mind racing before she let herself melt into the kiss. When he broke the kiss; he looked with understanding into her eyes because he honestly felt unworthy of her love. "Never call yourself unworthy of my love; Kallen you are the greatest source of happiness I have; even with Nunnally my happiness was always tempered by sorrow at her fate." Lelouch confessed to her "but with you Kallen; you have always fought for what you believed right; you are strong and courageous; you are everything I wanted the Black Knights to be and more you are beyond the exemplar of what a Black Knight should be Kallen. For the longest time the only thing that kept me going after the betrayal of the Black Knights was the thought of the happy life you could lead in the gentle world I planned to leave behind; just thinking of you could steel my resolve. I was able to keep fighting because of you Kallen. But now with you next to me I'm having trouble pushing forward; how can I when now you will be caught in all the hatred I have worked to focus on me? I wanted you to live a happy life knowing that it was impossible for that to happen with the path I had been forced to take if you stayed with me."

This small speech startled Kallen out of her sorrow induced stupor as she quickly flashed to anger; "Planned to leave BEHIND? BAKA!" she said as she swatted his head "Do you honestly think I wouldn't have figured out that you had sacrificed yourself! It's not fair Lelouch! You want me to live happily but how can I do that without you? If you had your way it's likely that the last thing I would have said to you would have been something about wanting you dead; I wouldn't have been able to live with myself knowing that the granting of a wish like that would have meant the death of the greatest hero the world had ever known!" Kallen said as she teared up at the thought; "Lelouch I would have hated myself for having ever wanted you dead. Why would you even come up with a plan like that? Did you honestly think I could be happy with that?"

"I came up with that plan because it was merely a modification of the plan that would have held the best results; I could still use the Black Knights to guard the world; it's just the detail of who the universally hated Emperor is and the man under the mask of Zero that would change." Lelouch responded…

"That's not good enough; Lelouch! I am not going to let you go get yourself killed; come up with another way to save the world! And Lelouch please; please don't lie to me" she said after getting his promise she fell asleep on his bed utterly spent as Lelouch tried to alter his plans so he didn't need to sacrifice himself; he couldn't deny his Q-1; his Queen after all.

* * *

Kallen came into awareness of her surroundings; somehow she knew that she was seeing what could come to pass; she realized that she had fallen asleep (or at least she hoped so) because the air was filled with a red miasma. She was tied to a pole as well as several other Black Knights while Lelouch, sporting a halo instead of his crown, rode on a throne on a float; she knew this was an execution… suddenly in the distance Zero appeared in the distance… but he was in white… what was going on here? Suddenly Zero charged dodging the Knightmare's fire evading Jeremiah before finally impaling Lelouch on the sword; but this Lelouch was no longer the wingless angel this Lelouch was the ten year old. The younger Lelouch smirked victoriously as the miasma cleared and his own light dimmed. He slid off of the sword and down the slope before coming to a stop next to his sister who looked absolutely terrified before the light that was Lelouch was gone completely

It was then that Kallen woke up screaming with Lelouch re-entering his quarters and rushing to her side asking what is wrong. All she said was "Change your Plan; Lelouch; or I will drag you to Australia and tie you to a wall in the Outback!" when she said this he gave her an odd look before he said "I am working on it." before thinking to himself; '_that was way too similar to Mao…_'. "What was with that look!" Kallen demanded "Nothing you need to worry yourself about Kallen" he replied '_I can't go through with it now anyway... I cant drag you down with me... no matter how much I deserve it' _this earned a pause from Kallen before she shook her headand remembered what she was just yelling at Lelouch about.

"No! You are not going to distract me like that Lelouch! You Idiot! How could you even think I could be happy with you gone?! What drove you to the point you wanted to die? Oh... God..." she said as realization swept over her "Damnit Lelouch! I'm here now! Share some of your burden with me; Let me in; I know you hurt. Please Lelouch I want to help you!" she begged "I love you; please let me..." she trailed off as Lelouch locked lips with her kissing her with all the passion she had wanted when she was escorting him at Ashford.

"Kallen; just being with you makes it bearable... I can carry on now." he said; a smile gracing his face. He walked toward his bed before lying down on it saying "It's been a long day" he was then pleasantly surprised when she settled down next to him whispering "I'm not taking any chances" before she snuggled closer to him.

* * *

Elsewhere Tamaki and a few other Black Knights, primarily members of the Zero squad, found themselves fleeing for their lives from Ohgi and Chiba because he and his big mouth just had to point out that Lelouch had a couple points in what he said over the bug. Next thing he knew he was being accused of being Geassed; lucky to be alive because the bullet missed his head just a bit to the left; he and his supporters managed to get out alive with their Knightmares and they agreed; they were safest with Lelouch; simply put possible death was infinitely preferable to certain death in all of their eyes and with Ohgi in his mental state right now they would be hunted down even if they stayed out of the fighting. "Never thought I'd actually be on the Zero squad" Tamaki said as he started grinning. As they set off to join up with Lelouch and Kallen.

* * *

A/N: All I have to say right now is that this story has a multilayer interpretation of demons run


	6. The Battle of Mount Fuji Part 1

Chapter 6: The Battle of Mt. Fuji part 1

A week passed as the various forces prepared for combat; Lelouch and Kallen, the newly anointed knight of One (she was planning to challenge Suzaku for the title of Knight of Zero as soon as possible), were needless to say quite surprised when the Avalon was hailed rather peculiarly when they were going to meet with Nina Einstein and they were called to the bridge because of the man claiming to be the interim leader of the Zero Squad.

As Lelouch strode onto the bridge with Kallen following him in her newly tailored black and silver version of the Rounds uniform Lelouch commanded "Accept the connection!" then the video connection came up and caused both Lelouch and Kallen to choke on their air.

"Hey Buddy! Howsit goin'?" Said Tamaki with a dopey grin on his face

Lelouch was the first to recover "What is the meaning of this Tamaki!" the emperor demanded.

"Do I need a reason to join forces with my Best Buddy?" Tamaki asked

"YES Tamaki you do; especially since the last time he saw you, you tried to kill him!" Kallen snapped back angrily.

"Nice uniform Kallen!" Tamaki said trying to distract her

"Why are you here Tamaki?" Kallen growled angrily causing Tamaki to realize he had better just say it.

"Fine… Just fine… Ohgi chased me off because I voiced my doubts… He tried to kill me! So since if Ohgi wins I am screwed anyway I decided that you probably still needed your Internal Cleaning Supporter… OH! By the way apparently the Zero Squadron is loyal to Kallen rather than to the Black Knight leadership… quite the fan-club you have here Kozuki-chan." Tamaki ended with a smile.

"I'll accept your help Tamaki… but at the slightest hint of betrayal…" Lelouch trailed off leaving the threat various military forces gathered in various staging areas each attending to their own plans before the day that they would meet in battle; the Zero squad (and Tamaki) reformed as the Black Guard under Knight of One Kozuki Kallen. In response to this announcement and to signify their alliance to the White Prince Ohgi and Chiba found the White Guard branch of the Black Knights. Meanwhile the main body of the Black Knights rally around Xinke and Todoh; who while opposed to Lelouch for holding the UFN representative hostage they are uneasy about allying themselves with Schneizel and his FLEIJA weapons. Lelouch and Suzaku talked about the change in plans from the Zero Requiem to the Zero Rhapsody with Suzaku strongly arguing to keep the Zero Requiem until Kallen intervened and asked him a simple question: "Do you think Euphemia would approve of the Requiem?" and this shut Suzaku up quite effectively but despite that both Kallen and Suzaku were frustrated by Lelouch's refusal to go into much detail about the Rhapsody. This caused them both to worry that he was flying by the seat of his pants.

* * *

All too soon the day came and the anti FLEIJA weapon still wasn't ready however Lelouch still had a trump card up his sleeve and he merely needed to delay long enough for the anti FLEIJA device to be completed; after all in a man to man fight, the winner is he who has one more round in his magazine. Lelouch however had gotten his hands on a second magazine

The battle started but Lelouch held his aces back; he started to extend his left flank to both counter Schneizel's crescent and to draw the enemy into his trap. Suddenly his ground forces broke before the central enemy charge emboldening the combined forces of the Black Knights and Schneizel. This caused Schneizel to make a central push towards the poorly defended Avalon. However not everyone was as confident as Schneizel.

'_This is far too simple… this isn't like him at all…' _Todoh thought '_wait a second!' _as Todoh's eyes widened in realization. "Everyone retreat it's a trap!" he yelled over the intercom but it was too late as the mountain below erupted destroying or disabling a third of the combined forces in mere moments. However the destruction was not finished yet, using the confusion caused by the destruction of the chain of command as well as the distraction of the cataclysm, the Black Guard; lead by Knight of One Kouzuki Kallen swept in from the north destroying another eighth of the combined forces before they could mount an effective defense to the sudden onslaught. Ohgi in the barely surviving Ikaruga contacted Schneizel demanding to know why Schneizel hadn't been able to predict this catastrophe; at the same time he was panicking because while thanks to Lelouch's troops breaking on the ground his total casualties were insignificant; the allied forces were suddenly down to almost half strength! His own White Guard had suffered the worst insisting that they be the ones to take Lelouch down he had suffered almost 80% losses in mere moments.

Elsewhere Tamaki while fighting had begun bragging to his comrades "Is this the best they can do? It's like shooting fish in a barrel!" before he promptly got shot out of the air and ejected safely to the amusement and worry of the others while they focused on fighting.

Schneizel decided that since he and Lelouch were closely matched tactically he had no choice but to deploy his strategic weapon. He started launching the FLEIJA weapons destroying scores of Lelouch's previously untouched forces; the Elite Black Knights used this as a chance to rush the Avalon to attempt to recover the UFN hostages. However it was during this charge that the Black Knights received new information from none other than the newly awakened Cornelia.

* * *

"Ugh where am I… Guilford is that you?" cornelia asked while waking up after being released from the medically induced Coma.

"Yes milady" Guilford replied.

It was then that Cornelia remembered everything; "Guilford do you have that recording that I had on me?!" she asked frantically

"Yes Princess! why?!" He asked.

"There's no time! Get it to whoever is in charge of the Black Knights now!" She ordered urgently.

Guilford attempted to reply but was cut off "Do it now!"

* * *

So this is part 1 of the battle of mount Fuji

How do you like the style that I write my battles with; it is done from the commander's perspective more than it is anything else though I did try to add a bit more of a human connection to it. I will rewrite this depending on the feedback I get. I actually am having trouble with deciding who to write the interpersonal combat dialogue I am kind of cut loose here suggestions are welcome.

Anyway please review.


	7. The Battle of Mount Fuji Part 2

Li Xingke and Tohdoh listened to the recording Cornelia had made before making their decision; the two leaders of the black knights agreed that while Lelouch was dangerous that at the moment. over a secure channel they quickly made a plan. shortly thereafter they both called to the Damocles asking for a chance to land and recharge seeing as how their carriers had been destroyed in the conflagration of Fuji.

Meanwhile the battle continued to rage the Black Guard had decimated and routed the flank they had attacked when Schneizel started launching Fleija warheads devastating Lelouch's troops with the massive blasts; Lelouch gave the order for his troops to spread out as fast as possible; he considered it ironic that against this devastating new weapon the best survival tactic for a large army was designed for surviving artillery back in the days of trench warfare. however shortly after giving the order he got the communication from Nina and Lloyd; "Your Majesty the the Anti-FLEIJA device had been completed"

"Get it ready it will be needed shortly; then head and watch over the representatives." Lelouch replied.

Lelouch got up and signaled for the Lancelot to be ready for the action to be taken to counteract the FLEIJA warhead. a broadcast was intercepted from the Black Knight High command going to all Black Knights. "Disengage the Britannian forces . REPEAT Disengage the Britannian forces. Pull Back and regroup at sector 42-A" with that all across the battlefield the Black Knights broke from combat and reorganized to the southwest of the Damocles. upon seeing this Lelouch immediately ordered his forces to scatter. Schneizel no longer had any reason to discriminate where he targeted his warheads. Lelouch also stepped up his Schedule and Launched with the FLEIJA Canceller after sending a message to Kallen calling her to pull back and support his and Suzaku's charge. to the Damocles. with that Lelouch and C.C. launched.

"Throwing your life away so easily Lelouch? How disappointing." Schneizel commented when he saw Lelouch depart from the told Nunnally to fire the FleiJa warhead.

At the moment that Lelouch saw the Sheild drop on the Damocles he immediately started entering the environmental data as quickly as he possibly could as Kallen and Suzaku fell in beside him both knowing that it was do or die. when Lelouch yelled out "Now" Suzaku grabbed the Spear from the back of the Shinkiro and propelled himself at top speed toward the activating FLEIJA warhead while Kallen raced forward and through the hole left in the Sheild around the Damocles to wreck the shields.

"LIVE SUZAKU!" Lelouch Called as he charged forwards himself to hold the shields open in case Kallen ran across resistance. the FLEIJA canceller worked just in the nick of time deactivating the warhead surprising all aboard the Damocles as well as the Black Knights and White Guard.

While regaining his composure Schneizel commented "I did not expect him to have prepared a toy like that..."

* * *

The White Guard on the other hand started to panic before organizing into a defense of the Damocles since they had pulled back to the Damocles itself in desperation.

Ohgi declared "All units Target the Shinkirou; If we take Lelouch down the battle is won!" suddenly TohDoh Kyoshiro and Li Xingkeintergepted the White Guard's attack saying "We'll hold them off Schniezel is the greater threat now! GO!" Kallen being unable to find the sheild generator because she was unfamiliar with the design broke off from her task and left to guard Lelouch while Suzaku intercepted Gino stopping him from getting through to follow Lelouch.

Chiba called out to Tohdoh "General! Has Lelouch geassed you to follow him? That demon!" as their blades clashed.

"No Chiba I am here to regain my lost honor." Tohdoh replied grimly as he parried a thrust from Chiba

That statement perplexed her "Regain your honor? you never lost it!"

The general responded "Then what do you call believing the word of the enemy over the actions of your own leader? why did we believe someone who could only benefit from having Zero be either captured or killed? Where is the honor in not giving a man a chance to defend himself? What Zero; what Lelouch offered us was winning back Japan with honor! What Ohgi bargained for was a false freedom for Japan and assuagence of our own paranioa in exchange for the safety of the UFN and our Honor!"

Chiba tried to interject but was cut off by Tohdoh "but!" "NO Chiba! For your gross misconduct you are hereby revoked of your rank and the Holy swords are dissolved; if you continue to serve a man who wishes to rule through fear then you will never enter my sight again!" Tohdoh said before damaging Chiba's knightmare so grievously that she had to eject.

As her cockpit crashed through the hallway she felt conflicted; how could she have been so blind? it hadn't hit her until she was ripped apart by the man she admired the most the man she loved; '_How can I call myself a samurai? I've ignored Bushido! I let my emotions over come me! Damnit there is only one thing I cvan honorably do' _She thought as she reached for her sword to perform Seppuku '_Forgive me general; Tohdoh my L..." _she thought before a jarring crash against the wall knocked her out.

Ohgi who has been defeated by Xing ke early in the fight and ejected fled and headed for the shuttle where he noticed Schneizel and Deithard ascending the ramp. Ohgi quickly hurried to join them asking "What is going on are you fleeing?" Schniezel simply responded that the self destruct had been activated; suddenly the screen flickered on. On the Screen a chair twisted around and Lelouch appeared on the screen "I've been waiting for you Schneizel"

* * *

"So... A Checkmate on me? huh? I see, now..." Schneizel said sitting down in the front left chair "Please tell me, how did you discern my strategy?"

on the screen Lelouch responded "It wasn't your strategy; what I read was your nature."

"My nature?"

"It was as if you didn't care about winning; the match in the forbidden city; the Coup d'etat of the Black Knights... You've always played a game where you couldn't lose."

"And that is why you thought I would abandon the Damocles?"

"Schneizel you will experience defeat this time."

"In other words, you will kill me." Schneizel said grimly

"I have a question; Did you want to control the world with the Damocles?" Lelouch asked

"You're wrong. I simply wished tocreate what everyone wanted. I wanted peace."

"To even ignore the nature of humans?"

"That is merely an opinion" Schneizel responded

"You decided to stop the world in it's present form; but one does not call a never changing world alive." Lelouch stated, "That is merely experience."

"However isn't the extension of that known as knowledge?"

"You truly are a gifted person; but you fail to see it because you are too talented. Certainly our father yearned for the past, you want the present, however I want the future" Lelouch said

"But the future may be worse than the present"

"No, it will be better. No matter how long it takes People will continue to strive for happiness"

"Yet that leads to ambitions" Schneizel then chuckled before scolding Lelouch "This is the pinnacle of foolishness, that is naught but emotion,A fabrication of hope and dreams that leads nowhere."

"That is the limit of what you see looking down on the world as a prince" Lelouch said "I have seen it all too many times; people rebel against misfortune; People who yearn for the future; they all prayed for happiness and continued to rebel, Geass, Masks even their origins"

"that is hypocritical; you who have denied the will of others affirming freewill? This has gone far enough Just kill me; however you will vanish from FLEIJA as well. we will create a world of peace with our liv..." suddenly Schneizel stopped as someone grabbed his shoulder and he glanced in that direction

"That is why I will give you a present" Lelouch on the screen said just before the real Lelouch said "You will serve me; Zero." Geassing Schneizel in the process

"You never intended to kill me from the start..." Schneizel started

"Your highness..." Kanon whispered while Deithard and Ohgi growled all restrained by guards.

"Damnit why didn't I think of it... it was a record that predicted Schneizel's thoughts." Deithard muttered to Ohgi

Schneizel stood up and the knelt to Lelouch Deithard broke free of his guard and shot the guard before turning the gun on Lelouch only to have it knocked away from him as Kallen acted to protect the man she loved. in the process she pistol-whipped Deithard unconscious before turning the weapon on Ohgi who had tried to break free of his own accord. Lelouch then ordered Schneizel to cancel the self destruct and schneizel did what he could but told lelouch that Nunnally was the one who had control of the FLEIJA warheads. after finding out where Nunnally was from Schneizel; Lelouch and Kallen rushed to get there as Ohgi said "Now all hope is lost."

* * *

"I can't believe they fell for that! It's such an old trick." Kallen exclaimed to Lelouch as they made their way to Nunnally.

"That's ironic coming from you..." Lelouch responded with a soft chuckle.

"What do you mean I never..." Kallen retorted

"The shower incident... Ashford Academy... ring any bells?" Lelouch said

"Shut up!" Kallen said in red-faced embarrassment as she punched Lelouch in the arm.

* * *

Author's note only 2 chapters left for this story. The last part of the battle of Mt. Fuji should be more of what you expect this chapter was rather weak (in my opinion.) check out my profile for the stories I have chosen to write after I have finished this one. on a side note I left Deithard alive simply because I really did want someone to chronicle the events. The next chapter should have a potent tearjerker and has a wtf moment in it.

Thank you for reviewing.

Another note I accidentally added this as a new chapter so sorry if that confuses anyone I deleted the old authors note my bad.  
ano


	8. The Battle of Mount Fuji Part 3

The Battle of Mount Fuji Part 3:

* * *

Lelouch and Kallen finally reached the Level that Nunnally was waiting on as they entered the gardens and approached Nunnally silently; Nunnally was confused for a moment _'Two sets of steps? one is Oni... NO My big brother... but who does the other set belong to... Suzaku? No it's to light for him...'_

"Its you; isn't it big brother?" she called out

"It is" he responded simply.

"The reason you're here must be this." Nunnally said as she lifted the Damocles' Key upright "Did you come for the Damocles' Key?"

"Yes; it's dangerous. Dangerous to you." he said as Kallen squeezed his shoulder in a show of support

"Then that's why..." Nunnally said as she put strenuous effort in "That's why I won't close my eyes to things any longer" _'Brother I'll stop you from falling to be nothing more than a demon; I have failed you but no more.' _When Nunnally's eyes opened Kallen stepped back one step and Lelouch was stunned.

_'She's broken father's Geass... with her own will?'_

"Now Lelouch will you use your Geass on me as well?" Nunnally asked "This is the first time in Eight years I've seen your face; the face of a brother and a murderer"

That accusation caused Lelouch to freeze up and Kallen's anger to rise.

"I wear that same face as well; don't I Lelouch?"

"Its been you firing the FLEIJAs up until now..."

"Yes I wanted to stop it all; to stop you" '_I'm sorry Onii-Sama I failed you' _"I would have done whatever I had to even if it meant killing my Onii-Sama; that's why I can't allow..."

It was at this point that Kallen couldn't hold it in any longer; "You pretentious little..."

"Is that you Kallen? Why are you with my brother? Didn't he turn on the Black Knights?"

"Yes Nunnally I am Kozuki Kallen; Knight of One; why do I serve your brother you wonder? Ha you wouldn't understand from your throne on high looking down at all the common people wondering why they don't just get along. Do you really think that your path is that much better than Lelouch's? You don't even understand Human nature!" Kallen seethed if she had ever gotten the chance to reunite with her Onii-Sama she would never be willing to lose him again; yet here was Nunnally with her lack of understanding talking down to the only member of her family who was actually fit to rule.

"It doesn't matter Kallen What Lelouch has done is wrong; I can't give him this key; i can't let him control the FLEIJA; Even if he uses his Geass on me." Nunnally retorted.

_'Use Geass on Nunnally? It's true...time after time I've wanted to use it on her; if only to cure her blindness... with the power of the king... But Nunnaly is the reason for almost everything i've done... I could never use Geass' power of Absolute obedience on now... No! I can't... If I resort to twisting my own sister's will then I'm...'  
_Kallen sensing the inner turmoil grasped Lelouch's shoulder before separating to flank Nunnally knowing exactly why he was so hesitant while outside the battle raged on...

"Lelouch you have no right to seize control of the world; you of all people who took the name Zero then bent the will of so many in order to serve your own."

"Are you saying that we would have been better off to remain in hiding? do you want a future of living in constant fear of assassination? this was for your future too Nunnally."

"My future whoever said i wanted this; i would have been perfectly satisfied by just living with you."

"Don't you see our reality is restricted by all sorts of things our whole history is struggle."

"You are plain despicable! Using Geass a power that forces people and violates their basic human dignity"

It was at this moment that Kallen sprung from the side catching Nunnally off guard and grabbing the Damocles' Key and in the process relieving Lelouch of the fear of having to geass his own sister.

As Kallen walked back to Lelouch and they both turned to leave Lelouch said a few final words to his sister "I hope you will understand soon Nunnally."

Nunnally just stared for a second after Her departing brother and his knight; as they descended the stairs Nunnally urged her wheelchair forward full speed and was thrown out of it and onto the stairs. "You're a monster Lelouch, A demon! You've even twisted Kallen into being nothing more than a puppet!"

Lelouch started wanted to turn badly but Kallen grabbed his hand and squeezed restoring his flagging resolve. "Nunnally; I can no longer give you special treatment, I really do hope you understand soon."

* * *

As Nunnally watched her brother and Kallen leave the chamber she started to sob... _'I failed you Lelouch... you're a demon now... and you'll enslave the world to get your way... You'll be hated forever... why couldn't I have at least prevented that...' _Nunnally continued to sob about having failed her wounded angel so completely.

It took her a moment but she wondered why Lelouch twisted Kallen's soul... _'Why do that to Kallen; Lelouch? You acted more like a normal teenager with her... why would you degrade her like that? How could you be that cruel?' _So convinced was Nunnally that Lelouch was an evil control freak that she couldn't comprehend that maybe just maybe, the reason why Kallen followed Lelouch was love.

* * *

In the lower decks of the Damocles the Tohdoh and Xingke's Knightmares had run out of power; luckily for them they had sucessfully destroyed the last of the Knightmares operated by the members of the White Guard.

Tohdoh knowing that he would be unable to reach the upper floors in time to affect the outcome of events descended from his Knightmare with the zip line and made his way to the fallen control pod of Nagisa Chiba's Knightmare.

Upon opening the hatch he saw a sight he really wasn't prepared to see; Chiba was lying unconscious; her left arm was clearly broken; her right arm bent at an unnatural angle; however the most horrific sight was the control panel upon which her head was resting; it was dripping with her blood and was beginning to smoke.

Tohdoh immediately did the first thing that came to him; he lifted chiba out of the seat and pulled her out of the cockpit entirely before setting her down and beginning to assess and field treat her wounds.

* * *

As Lelouch and Kallen entered the main hall of the Damocles Ohgi, Kanon and the newly awakened Deithard watched; the first two with a sense of horror while Deithard watched mesmerized; he should have seen it the moment that Lelouch escaped the Damocles; the end of Zero's legend wasn't the beginning of Schneizel El Britannia's as he had thought; it was the beginning of the Legend of Lelouch Vi Britannia; he was here to bare witness to whatever Lelouch decided to do; the fate of the world now lay solely on the shoulders of the former banished prince... So while Ohgi and Kanon grew more terrified by the second; Deithard merely grew more excited. He watched enraptured as he gave Schneizel a set of coordinates before turning to face the camera; while Kallen stepped back so that Lelouch could have center stage after he gave a quick explanation of what he planned Deithard noted that Kallen had a smile on her face; _'Is she geassed or is that real?'_

* * *

The FLEIJA was launched from the Damocles (which was now well above the range of the other flying craft) and exploded above the battle field stopping the all the combatants in their tracks when a video was broadcast to the world;

"Citizens of the World! I am Lelouch Vi Britannia 99th Emperor of the Holy Empire of Britannia; and your only ruler"

That statement made Ohgi pass out to him the worst possible outcome had just occurred; Deithard however looked on with excitement.

"Schneizel has surrendered to me and as a result I am now in control of both the Damocles and the FLEIJA weapons; No one has the power to fight me anymore; there are no longer any obstacles to my hegemony; today as of this moment the world lies in my hands; Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you; Obey me Subjects! Obey me World..."

* * *

His next action determined the course of the future...

* * *

A/N sorry for taking so long to get this out but here it finally is; enjoy and sorry about the cliffhanger I just really wanted to end it like that.

word count: 1511


	9. Authors note

sorry about taking so long to get chapter 8 out.


End file.
